With our officers out and about across opening weekend, here is a summary of how the season kicked off for anglers.

Four Springs was its usual early season productive self. All methods of angling took fish, with fly anglers very happy to see fish around the edges in the northern part of the lake. Lure anglers did well by casting and trolling, but found the fishing went quiet in still and bright conditions. Bait anglers also did well there with browns taken on worms and rainbows caught on Powerbait.

South Riana Lake was a popular option in the northwest. Some anglers did very well on soft plastics, particularly off the dam wall and around the eastern side of the lake. It was a bit quiet for bait fishermen, but we would expect this to change once the lake begins to rise and the fish push into the shore looking for worms. Talbots Lagoon also fished well in the northwest, with wet flies and soft plastics successful. Rainbows accounted for 75 per cent of the fish caught, with some captured over 4lb. Some of the private farm dams for public fishing on the northwest coast performed exceptionally well for anglers set rod fishing with worms. These dams are a great early season option, more information can be found here.

Over east there were some good fish taken out of Tooms Lake and Lake Leake, but anglers reported having to work hard for them. In the northeast Curries River Reservoir fished well with good sized browns and recently stocked rainbows being caught. All methods were productive with the causeway and western side the better spots. Blackmans and Big Waterhouse also gave up good sized fish in great condition and would be well worth a visit over the next couple of months.

Up top, good fish were caught out of Bronte Lagoon and the Brady’s Chain. The browns in there are looking really good this year - fat and strong! Anglers at Penstock casting wet flies were also rewarded with good quality browns up to 4lb in weight. Good fish were also taken from lakes Sorell and Crescent, but anglers reported having to work for them.

The lack of early rain this winter and recent rains have resulted in a delayed spawning run this year. At many key waters around Tasmania brown trout are still spawning, which has potentially impacted lake catches over the opening weekend. We expect that the brown trout spawning will be complete in the coming weeks which will result in more hungry trout looking to put condition back on.

There were mixed reports from the rivers over the weekend. Many are still recovering from cormorants, however, some of the less impacted rivers with good habitat and refuge areas for trout fished well, including the Tyenna River, St Patricks River and upper Meander. We expect these waters to continue to fish well through the season, so if you are keen to fish rivers these waters provide the best options.  This season, anglers are encouraged to practice catch and release on our rivers to further aid recovery of trout stocks.

On the compliance front, Officers from the IFS, Parks and Wildlife, Tasmania Police and Marine and Safety Tasmania spoke to nearly 400 anglers throughout the State during the weekend. Pleasingly only 13 offences were detected. Please keep in mind some waters are still closed to protect the spawning runs of rainbow trout. Possessing an assembled rod, reel and line (or fishing) without an angling licence at inland waters also attracts a fine of $410.  A handy summary of the rules and list of open waters can be found on our website here or via the Infish App.

The $25,000 tagged fish in Yingina / Great Lake is still at large despite it creating a lot of interest from anglers. There are 30 tagged fish this year that have been stocked all around Tasmania as part of our 2025-26 Tagged Trout Promotion. None were caught over the weekend so there are still plenty of chances!